IELTS stands for International English Language Testing System. It’s an English language test for both written and spoken English administered by Cambridge ESOL , The British Council and IDP Australia. The IELTS test is designed for students who want to live or work in an English-speaking country or study at an English-speaking academic institution. It is designed to test a complete range of abilities from beginner to advanced users. There are two versions of the IELTS test: The Academic Module and the General Training Module. The Academic Module is designed for students who want to follow an academic course at university or other higher education institutions. The General Training Module is more suitable for students who want to study at secondary school level or enrol in non-academic training courses.
2 What are the benefits of taking IELTS?
IELTS is recognised by thousands of employers, academic and government institutions in countries all over the world, including America, UK, Australia, Canada and New Zealand. If you want to live, work or study in an English- speaking country then an IELTS qualification can help you.
The IELTS test is flexible and suitable for all levels. Study at the level you want to achieve the score you need, whatever your goal: to study at university, get a job or apply for a visa. More than 900,000 people a year use the IELTS test to help them achieve their goals.
IELTS focuses on communication in real-life through reading, writing, listening and speaking helping you to use English in real-life situations confidently.
3 What is the format of the IELTS exam?
There are four papers the IELTS test. All candidates must take the Listening and Speaking papers, candidates must choose between the Academic Reading and Writing papers and the General Reading and Writing papers.
Academic Reading\General Reading
You will have one hour to answer 40 questions about three different texts. The reading passages will be of different lengths but the total length of all three passages will be about 2,500 words. Texts types may include books, journals, textbooks, magazine and newspaper articles. You will be required to answer any of the following types of questions: multiple choice; true or false; matching; sentence or summary completion; labelling diagrams; writing short answers.
Academic Writing\General Writing
You will have one hour to complete two tasks. Task 1 will be to write a piece of no less than 150 words either summarising or describing a picture or diagram or writing a short letter. Task 2 will be to write a piece of no less than 250 words discussing an issue or problem.
Listening
You will have about 30 minutes to answer 40 questions. There are four sections. In each section you will hear a conversation, a discussion, a lecture or a talk. You will answer 10 questions on each section. You will be required to answer the following types of questions: multiple choice; writing short answer; matching; completing notes, and tables; labelling diagrams; sentence or summary completion.
Speaking
There are three parts to the speaking section and it should last between 11 and 14 minutes in total:
Part one: you will be required to answer some general questions and give information about yourself, your family and your home country etc.
Part two: you will be required to speak for two to three minutes on a given topic. You will be given the topic during the test and will have one minute to prepare.
Part three: you will be required to answer questions about the short presentation you gave in Part 2 and to discuss some issues or topics relevant to it.
The IELTS test is available as a computer-based test (CBT) as well as the paper-based test. Both exams contain the same questions and are marked to the same criteria so you will achieve the same certificate with either format. However, there are certain benefits to taking the CBT such as, faster and easier access to your results on-line, a set of headphones for the listening section and being able to edit answers on-screen during the test.
Each section makes up 25% of the total mark. Each candidate will receive a test report with a grade between 0 and 9. 0 meaning the candidate did not attempt the test and 9 meaning the candidate is an expert user of English. Most universities in the UK would require an IELTS score of between 6 and 7.
4 How do I prepare for the IELTS exam?
In addition to following an IELTS course with an English language teacher, it is also useful to take some IELTS practice tests so that you will know what to expect in the real exam. If you practise the different parts of the exam individually and check your scores, you can then see the exam parts which you need to practise most. Overall scores on practice exams can also help to give you an idea of how you might perform in the real exam.
Interactive practice tests on iTests follow the same format, questions and timing as the real exam so that you get a realistic exam experience. iTests practice tests are divided into small parts so you can choose which exam parts you need to practise. Your personal score chart shows your performance so you can check your own performance. There are even some writing questions with automatic marking allowing you to practise for the writing part of the exam and receive your grades immediately.
5 How do I sign up for IELTS?
To sign up for the IELTS test you must complete an application form and send it to your nearest IELTS test centre. Speak to your teacher or language school for more information about how to enrol. If you’re not studying English at the moment you can contact your nearest IELTS test centre for more information. There are more than 300 of these test centres all over the world. To find the one nearest to you visit the Cambridge ESOL website.
6 How much does it cost?
IELTS test fees can vary from country to country. To find out more information contact your nearest IELTS test centre.
7 Where can I take IELTS?
You can take the IELTS exam at any authorised IELTS test centre. There are more than 300 of these test centres in more than 100 countries all over the world. To find the one nearest to you visit the Cambridge ESOL website.